Test No.2131
Sri Lanka 421 (Jayawardene 165, Dickwella 72, Mathews 63) and 229 for 8 dec (Sangakkara 72, Mathews 63*, Morkel 4-45) drew with South Africa 282 (Amla 139, Perera 5-69, Herath 4-71) and 159 for 8 (Herath 5-40, Perera 3-60) After a riveting, un-Youtubeable day of cricket, South Africa are back at the top of the Test rankings. The settings were dramatic - leaden skies for most of the day, four or more men poised round the bat, the indefatigable spinners rifling through their overs and some of the world's most flamboyant batsmen in the middle. And the batsmen deadbatted virtually everything to hang on for the draw that they were seemingly aiming for since midway through the second day. A few-minutes-long clip can't capture the technique, temperament and concentration needed to survive against a misbehaving ball on a raging turner or the feeling that every delivery could transform the game. Edges, noisy appeals and getting beaten are unavoidable even for the very best batsmen, but those can't be allowed to shake your focus. On a day when South African fans prayed more for rain than for runs, the rain intermittently interrupted play but Sri Lanka still wheeled in 94 overs. South Africa ended on 159 for 8 in 111 overs - their slowest effort this century, slower even than the great escapes in Johannesburg and Adelaide. It was also their first Test series win in Sri Lanka since 1993, extended their incredible eight-year unbeaten run on the road, and made light of the recent loss of two giants in Jacques Kallis and Graeme Smith. At tea, Sri Lanka had taken only four wickets and those consummate match-savers, Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis, were in the middle. In the space of five overs, though, both were dismissed to slip catches by Mahela Jayawardene - who became the third to 200 Test catches - and Sri Lanka's spirits were further lifted as the grey skies changed to mostly blue. Umbrellas that young fans had been using to keep out the rain, were now being used to keep out the sunshine. That left JP Duminy and the tail more than two hours to survive. Two hours for the Sri Lanka spinners to mop up the innings. In the first innings, Duminy had blotted out 58 deliveries to score 3; this time he took 65 deliveries to score 3. Vernon Philander showed the ability that has helped him bat 337 deliveries in his previous four innings, and with short bursts of rain eating up another 25 minutes, South Africa were breathing easier. About 75 minutes remained when the players returned, and Duminy fell just as the final hour began - late in bringing down the bat against Dilruwan Perera. The anxiety levels shot up further for South Africa when Dale Steyn attempted an extravagant against-the-turn cover drive on his first ball. With Ajantha Mendis showing no rhythm, Angelo Mathews not bowling, and the only specialist quick, Suranga Lakmal, hardly used, Sri Lanka were essentially down to a two-man attack of Rangana Herath and Perera. Mendis sent down only 13 overs in the final innings, more than 30 less than Herath and Perera each did. Herath has bowled 172 overs in the series, Perera 158.3, and they wheeled away tirelessly on the final day as well. In the final hour, Sri Lanka frequently had all their fielders round the bat - a six-man catching crowd on the off side, and three lurking on the leg side. The appeals were becoming desperate, wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella getting on bended knee as he pleaded with the umpires, when Herath produced the breakthrough, getting Steyn to nick to the keeper. Imran Tahir had whacked his helmet with his bat in frustration after being dismissed in the first innings. He had drawn a somewhat similar reaction from South Africa fans with his wayward bowling this series, but called on to block out the final half hour, he delivered. With Philander calmly tapping everything away, and Tahir defending with exaggerated caution - the ball barely rolled a foot away after one of his crouching forward defensives - time began to run out for Sri Lanka. Suddenly South Africa's batsmen were calling for a change of gloves, a drink or anything the 12th man could run out to deliver and eat up precious minutes. It came down to the final over, and the tension was so unbearable that Quinton de Kock pulled the top of his shirt over his head in the dressing room to avoid having to watch. Tahir, who was cramping badly, was lying prone on the ground - prompting remarks about footballers faking injury - but once he was back on his feet, an unflustered Philander kept out the six balls from Herath, tucked his bat under his arm and walked off. This is the third time in four Tests that it was a final-over finish for Sri Lanka - they came out on top in both games in England, but there was no joy this time. They were undone by a team effort from South Africa, with not a single wicket going down to a rash stroke or a rush of blood. Amla was the stand-out batsman, but almost all the others also stuck around for at least an hour as their technique was rigorously examined by Herath and Perera. Herath was so precise that in his 27 overs before tea, the batsmen could leave alone only 10 deliveries while Perera kept tossing the ball up, and was unerringly accurate. South Africa got an early indication of what to expect when Dean Elgar lost his offstump to a delivery that spun sharply across the stumps. Quinton de Kock was the most positive of the batsmen, but he had several leading edges as he looked to work plenty of deliveries to leg. He finally perished, caught at backward short leg for a relatively brisk 37. That brought together South Africa's two best batsmen, Amla and AB de Villiers. Sri Lanka used up both their DRS appeals on de Villiers, once when he was yards out of the crease and the ball nowhere near the bat, and another in the 58th over when he survived a close lbw call. Amla hit two early boundaries, and then played out 57 successive dot balls. He was dropped by Angelo Mathews at gully in the 49th over, and was troubled by his hamstring, but nothing shook him out of his thou-shalt-not-pass approach. Sri Lanka's fielders were quietened as the partnership stretched towards 25 overs, before Herath produced a ripper that drifted in and spun away to take de Villiers' off stump. Du Plessis survived a first-ball lbw through the DRS, and Amla was reprieved soon after tea when a certain lbw was turned down. Fortune seemed on South Africa's side, but there was to be no cruise to the finish line, as Herath removed both batsmen to set up a nerve-shredding finale. A Test which began with a manic first session where runs were scored at 4.42 runs an over, ended with a session in which runs were scored at 1.38 an over. '''Fall of wickets: '''Fall of wickets: '''Fall of wickets: '''Fall of wickets: '''Match details *Series - South Africa won the 2-match series 1-0 *Test debuts - Niroshan Dickwella (Sri) *Player of the match - Mahela Jayawardene *Player of the series - Dilruwan Perera *TV umpire - Billy Bowden *Match referee - Jeff Crowe *Reserve umpire - Ranmore Martinesz Close of play *Day 1 - Sri Lanka 1st innings 305/5 (DPMD Jayawardene 140*, N Dickwella 12*, 86 ov) *Day 2 - South Africa 1st innings 98/3 (HM Amla 46*, AB de Villiers 11*, 52 ov) *Day 3 - Sri Lanka 2nd innings 11/0 (WU Tharanga 6*, JK Silva 5*, 5 ov) *Day 4 - South Africa 2nd innings 38/1 (D Elgar 13*, Q de Kock 21*, 17 ov) *Day 5 - South Africa 2nd innings 159/8 (111 ov) - end of match Match notes Day 1 *Sri Lanka 1st innings *Drinks: Sri Lanka - 44/2 in 13.0 overs (JK Silva 14, DPMD Jayawardene 18) *Sri Lanka: 50 runs in 14.6 overs (91 balls), Extras 5 *3rd Wicket: 50 runs in 77 balls (JK Silva 16, DPMD Jayawardene 30, Ex 5) *Sri Lanka: 100 runs in 21.4 overs (131 balls), Extras 7 *DPMD Jayawardene: 50 off 58 balls (7 x 4) *Lunch: Sri Lanka - 115/3 in 26.0 overs (DPMD Jayawardene 53, AD Mathews 0) *Sri Lanka: 150 runs in 35.6 overs (217 balls), Extras 7 *Drinks: Sri Lanka - 165/3 in 39.0 overs (DPMD Jayawardene 71, AD Mathews 32) *4th Wicket: 50 runs in 82 balls (DPMD Jayawardene 18, AD Mathews 32, Ex 0) *Sri Lanka: 200 runs in 50.5 overs (306 balls), Extras 8 *DPMD Jayawardene: 100 off 137 balls (13 x 4, 1 x 6) *Tea: Sri Lanka - 212/3 in 54.0 overs (DPMD Jayawardene 101, AD Mathews 48) *AD Mathews: 50 off 100 balls (4 x 4) *4th Wicket: 100 runs in 178 balls (DPMD Jayawardene 48, AD Mathews 51, Ex 1) *Sri Lanka: 250 runs in 66.3 overs (400 balls), Extras 14 *Drinks: Sri Lanka - 269/4 in 71.0 overs (DPMD Jayawardene 128, KDK Vithanage 6) *Over 81.2: Review by Sri Lanka (Batting), Umpire - NJ Llong, Batsman - N Dickwella (Upheld) *Sri Lanka: 300 runs in 82.3 overs (497 balls), Extras 22 *End Of Day: Sri Lanka - 305/5 in 86.0 overs (DPMD Jayawardene 140, N Dickwella 12) Day 2 *DPMD Jayawardene: 150 off 244 balls (17 x 4, 1 x 6) *6th Wicket: 50 runs in 95 balls (DPMD Jayawardene 17, N Dickwella 32, Ex 1) *Sri Lanka: 350 runs in 96.5 overs (583 balls), Extras 24 *Over 96.6: Review by South Africa (Bowling), Umpire - RA Kettleborough, Batsman - N Dickwella (Struck down) *N Dickwella: 50 off 69 balls (7 x 4) *Drinks: Sri Lanka - 361/5 in 99.0 overs (DPMD Jayawardene 156, N Dickwella 50) *6th Wicket: 100 runs in 170 balls (DPMD Jayawardene 32, N Dickwella 63, Ex 5) *Lunch: Sri Lanka - 395/6 in 111.0 overs (N Dickwella 63, MDK Perera 9) *Sri Lanka: 400 runs in 114.3 overs (690 balls), Extras 27 *Over 119.6: Review by Sri Lanka (Batting), Umpire - NJ Llong, Batsman - BAW Mendis (Struck down) *Innings Break: Sri Lanka - 421/10 in 121.4 overs (HMRKB Herath 7) *South Africa 1st innings *Tea: South Africa - 23/2 in 16.0 overs (F du Plessis 17, HM Amla 2) *South Africa: 50 runs in 32.3 overs (196 balls), Extras 2 *Drinks: South Africa - 55/2 in 34.0 overs (F du Plessis 29, HM Amla 21) *3rd Wicket: 50 runs in 163 balls (F du Plessis 22, HM Amla 27, Ex 1) *End Of Day: South Africa - 98/3 in 52.0 overs (HM Amla 46, AB de Villiers 11) Day 3 *South Africa: 100 runs in 53.2 overs (321 balls), Extras 2 *HM Amla: 50 off 140 balls (3 x 4) *4th Wicket: 50 runs in 108 balls (HM Amla 28, AB de Villiers 20, Ex 2) *Drinks: South Africa - 143/3 in 65.0 overs (HM Amla 65, AB de Villiers 32) *South Africa: 150 runs in 68.3 overs (416 balls), Extras 7 *Lunch: South Africa - 163/5 in 82.0 overs (HM Amla 77, JP Duminy 3) *Over 87.3: Review by Sri Lanka (Bowling), Umpire - RA Kettleborough, Batsman - JP Duminy (Struck down) *HM Amla: 100 off 253 balls (10 x 4) *South Africa: 200 runs in 96.2 overs (583 balls), Extras 8 *Drinks: South Africa - 201/6 in 97.0 overs (HM Amla 107, VD Philander 7) *Tea: South Africa - 234/7 in 111.0 overs (HM Amla 119, DW Steyn 18) *Over 112.6: Review by Sri Lanka (Bowling), Umpire - NJ Llong, Batsman - DW Steyn (Struck down) *South Africa: 250 runs in 117.3 overs (710 balls), Extras 9 *Drinks: South Africa - 272/8 in 128.0 overs (HM Amla 132, Imran Tahir 12) *Innings Break: South Africa - 282/10 in 134.5 overs (HM Amla 139) *Sri Lanka 2nd innings *End Of Day: Sri Lanka - 11/0 in 5.0 overs (WU Tharanga 6, JK Silva 5) Day 4 *Sri Lanka: 50 runs in 13.6 overs (84 balls), Extras 0 *Drinks: Sri Lanka - 66/1 in 18.0 overs (JK Silva 16, KC Sangakkara 20) *Over 22.4: Review by Sri Lanka (Batting), Umpire - RA Kettleborough, Batsman - DPMD Jayawardene (Struck down) *Sri Lanka: 100 runs in 28.2 overs (170 balls), Extras 0 *Lunch: Sri Lanka - 108/3 in 30.0 overs (KC Sangakkara 38, AD Mathews 14) *Rain: Sri Lanka - 108/3 in 30.0 overs (KC Sangakkara 38, AD Mathews 14) *KC Sangakkara: 50 off 70 balls (6 x 4) *4th Wicket: 50 runs in 79 balls (KC Sangakkara 30, AD Mathews 19, Ex 2) *Sri Lanka: 150 runs in 37.6 overs (229 balls), Extras 2 *Drinks: Sri Lanka - 188/5 in 45.0 overs (AD Mathews 41, N Dickwella 8) *Sri Lanka: 200 runs in 46.6 overs (283 balls), Extras 4 *Bad Light: Sri Lanka - 203/6 in 48.0 overs (AD Mathews 48) *Tea: Sri Lanka - 203/6 in 48.0 overs (AD Mathews 48) *AD Mathews: 50 off 70 balls (2 x 4, 1 x 6) *Innings Break: Sri Lanka - 229/8 in 53.4 overs (AD Mathews 63) *South Africa 2nd innings *Bad Light: South Africa - 38/1 in 17.0 overs (D Elgar 13, Q de Kock 21) *End Of Day: South Africa - 38/1 in 17.0 overs (D Elgar 13, Q de Kock 21) Day 5 *Rain: South Africa - 47/1 in 21.1 overs (D Elgar 13, Q de Kock 28) *South Africa: 50 runs in 21.4 overs (131 balls), Extras 9 *Rain: South Africa - 55/2 in 24.0 overs (Q de Kock 28, HM Amla 4) *Lunch: South Africa - 55/2 in 24.0 overs (Q de Kock 28, HM Amla 4) *Drinks: South Africa - 79/3 in 50.0 overs (HM Amla 14, AB de Villiers 4) *South Africa: 100 runs in 65.4 overs (396 balls), Extras 12 *Tea: South Africa - 104/4 in 71.0 overs (HM Amla 24, F du Plessis 6) *Over 82.1: Review by Sri Lanka (Bowling), Umpire - NJ Llong, Batsman - VD Philander (Struck down) *Rain: South Africa - 118/6 in 86.5 overs (JP Duminy 1, VD Philander 8) *Over 93.4: Review by South Africa (Batting), Umpire - RA Kettleborough, Batsman - JP Duminy (Struck down) *Over 99.5: Review by Sri Lanka (Bowling), Umpire - RA Kettleborough, Batsman - VD Philander (Struck down) *South Africa: 150 runs in 105.6 overs (639 balls), Extras 22 External links *Scorecard at Cricinfo.com Category:Test Matches